Ken, I think our last meeting was Spring 2010. I remember bringing up the anniversary party during one of our last phone calls. In any case, perhaps we should draft an 'email of concern' cosigned by the council members. Since we've not been officially dissolved, maybe should make ourselves useful.

I think the problem was that we liked everything that the greater community didn't . . . .

That was the inherent flaw in using longstanding customers for essentially market research, which to be useful needs to target the larger market as a whole not those who have already bought in. From a marketing research perspective it was likely not only useless but probably misleading.

If you look at what appears to be the single biggest success for Axiom recently, the VP180, it was a member who sought a new solution for a long existing problem, not having a center speaker that lived up to the standard of Axioms tower speakers. If Axiom or the members of the council had been listening to the complaints from some customers, not all Axiom haters either, and a few reviewers they would have developed a center to better match their towers years ago.

In general new ideas come from those who are either not satisfied which existing options, are outsiders, or tend not to succumb to the norming effects of groupthink. Picking long standing members almost ensured a lack of diversity of ideas and opinions. I learned long ago from the Marine Corps that when in charge it’s beneficial to surround oneself with people of differing opinions, backgrounds, and most importantly the moral courage to “tell the emperor he has no cloths.”

In our defense, I'd say that the VP180 was something we were all behind... And it was hardly a mutual admiration society.

You may have been behind the VP180 but it wasn’t the idea of anyone on the council. Nor did I say that the council was a “mutual admiration” society only that it’s composition virtually ensured it would be weak in the areas of strongly dissenting opinions or novel ideas from a newcomer’s (read new customer’s) perspective.

Each of my m80's has a small spot similar to that on the back corner. Of course, I did order from the factory outlet and otherwise they are flawless so I can't complain. If I would have ordered A stock I'm not sure if it would bother me or not as you can't even see it unless you stick your head behead the speaker. (but that's just me)

If I paid for a premium finish on a wood veneer speaker if something was out of wack I would be disappointed.